Clothes-line reel.



c. A. BOYER. CLOTHES LINE REEL. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 18 1917 1,270,257. Patented J 1mg 25, 1918..

nrrn STATES PATENT carries."

CHARLES A. BOYER, or wAnsAw, INDIANA, AssIeNoR T0. rnnnneno MANUFAC- TUBING COMPANY, or WARSAW, INDIANA, A coRronA'rIoN. on ILLINOIS,

' CLOTHES-LINE REEL.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Patented June 25, 1918.

Application filed January 18, 1917. Serial No. 142,971.

citizen of the United States of America, and

resident of Warsaw, Kosciusko county, Indiana, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Clothes-Line Reels, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in clothes line reels and has for its object the provision of an improved recl which is simple and economical in construction whereby the efficiency of the same is greatly increased.

These and other features and objects of my invention will be more readily understood by having reference to the accompanying drawings in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a reel embodying the features of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 22 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

As illustrated, my improved reel consists of an inclosing casing within which is mounted the spool for holding the line. This casing consists of two end covers 4. and 5 stamped out of suitable. sheet metal such as tin. These covers are similar in construction and consist of a dome-shaped central portion and a flat marginal portion provided with an inwardly extending flange 6. Formed integrally with this flange there is a supporting member 7 which is provided with a right angular section 8 provided with suitable screw holes 9 whereby the reel can be secured to the supporting surface. By having the supporting members formed integrally with the end covers in this manner, not only is the cost of manufacture reduced but a more rigid and secure mounting is obtained.

The body portion of the reel is formed by means of a cylindrical band 10 of sheet metal which is provided with ribs 11, 12 near the margin thereof and which band is adapted to fit within the inwardly extendin flanges 6 of the end sections, as clearly s own in Fig. 3. In order to secure together the opposite ends of this cylindrical band a small tongue 13 is struck up from one end of this band, which tongue is adapted to receive and overlap the other end of the band, as

clearly shown in Fig. 2. By this construction the engagement of this tongue with the opposite end of the cylmdrlcal body member prevents this member from collapsing, while the end covers, which surround this body member, prevent the same from expanding. l/Vith this construction, therefore, the body member is rigidly held in place without the employment, of the usual rivets or other fastening i'neans, such as welding. In this manner I still further reduce the cost of manufacture of my improved device.

Mounted within this inclosing casing is a spool 14 on which the line 15 is wound,

which line passes through suitable openings 16 in the body portion of the casing. One end of the spool 14 is provided with a reduced end portion 17 which extends through an opening in the end cover 5 being held in place by means of a cotter pin 18. The opposite end of this spool is provided with an operating handle 19 which extends through an opening in the cover t. This handle 19 is provided with a reversed twist 20, as clearly shown in Fig. 1 which forms a wedge-shaped structure within which the line may be looped. With this construction, when suflieient line has been withdrawn from the reel, one or both of the lines 15 are looped within this wedge-shaped section of the handle and become wedged in the same and thus prevent more line being withdrawn from the reel. In this manner the line is held taut without the employment of the usual paw] and ratchet which has heretofore been employed for this purpose.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a very efiicient construction and one which can be very economically maufactured. First by reason of having the supporting members formed integrally with the end covers a very rigid and economical method of attachment is obtained, and secondly, by use of the improved means for securing together the two ends of the body portion I eliminate, and thus save the expense of, the usual rivets employed for attaching these two ends together, and third, by means of the improved handle I provide means for holding the line taut without the employment of the usual pawl and ratchet. All these features cooperate in producing not only a very eflicient structure but one which is exceedingly cheap to manufacture.

While I have illustrated and, described only one particular embodiment of my inventlon, it will be understood that I do not wish to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and intent of my invention.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a clothes line reel, an inclosing casing, a spool mounted within the same'having an operating handle, said operating handle consisting of a member extending substantially at right angles to the was of said spool and provided with a reverse twist forming a U-shaped section adapted to re-* ceive and hold the line to thereby hold the. same taut when suflicient line has been withdrawn from the reel.

2. In a clothes line reel, an inclosing casing, comprising a pair of end covers having supporting members integrally secured thereto, a body member held between said end covers, a spool mounted within said casing provided with an operating handle, said operating handle having a reverse twist forming a U-shaped portion adapted to receive a line to hold the same taut when desired. I

3. In a clothes line reel, an 'inclosing casing comprising a pair of end covers having integrally formed supporting members thereon, a body portion consisting of a cylindrical piece of metal held together by means of an outwardly extending tongue formed on one end of said member and overlapping the other end of said member, a reel mounted within said casing, and an operating handle therefor having a reverse twist forming a U-shaped structure adapted to receive the line to therebyhold the same taut when desired.

Signed by me at Warsaw, Indiana,vthis 12th day of January, 1917.

CHARLES A. BOYER.

Witnesses: .7

C. C. LONGFELLOW, ERWIN N. Coon.

Qopies of this patent may be obtained for live cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C." 

